Crew view

History was made in the Crew’s game on Saturday against FC Toronto, but not the kind the club
wanted to see. One week after allowing two goals in stoppage time to lose 2-0 to New England, the
Crew suffered its first-ever loss in Toronto in even more stunning fashion. Both Toronto goals came
after the 87th minute to erase a 1-0 deficit. The Crew has lost five of its past six games to fall
seven points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

No defense

The front office made improving the team’s defense its top offseason priority, and seven
defenders or defensive midfielders were not re-signed while nine new players were brought in. It’s
safe to say the Crew has not seen the return on investment it had hoped for. The past seven goals
allowed have all come in the 80th minute or later, with three of the past four coming in stoppage
time. In the process, the Crew has squandered leads in four of its past five losses.

Playoff picture

For the first time all season, the Crew is more than two wins out of the final playoff spot. At
23 points, it sits in eighth place, seven points behind both New England and Houston. Additionally,
Houston and Chicago, which is in seventh place at 25 points, have played one fewer game. After
failing to reach the postseason last year, the Crew is almost assured of not making the playoffs in
consecutive seasons for the first time since a three-year span from 2005 to ’07.

Carrying on

After the loss to New England, portions of practice open to reporters saw players enjoying
themselves on the field with games and extra drills in a relaxed atmosphere. Coach Robert Warzycha
said the team’s effort level and intensity level were both up to par during the week leading up to
the Toronto game. It remains to be seen how the Crew will move on from yet another gut-wrenching
loss, which raised questions within the locker room about personnel decisions made prior to the
game by head coach Robert Warzycha.

Viana returns

Three months after suffering an injured hamstring, offseason acquisition Agustin Viana made his
return to the lineup and started at left back. He was replaced by rookie Chad Barson in the 79th
minute with the Crew ahead 1-0 after making a pair of goal-saving plays that helped keep Toronto
off the scoreboard. “He was scrapping a little bit, but he did a good job,” Warzycha said.

Digital

2006: The last time the Crew had 23 points or fewer after 21 games

3: Number of wins by Toronto in its past 35 games

17: Different starting lineups used by the Crew this season

9: Goals scored by Dominic Oduro, including one on Saturday

Quotable

“We’ve given up late goals and allowed other teams to get back in and use that momentum to get
back in when we should be closing teams out. That starts with me. Everyone needs to do better. That
kind of stuff seems to be happening a lot.” — Crew goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum